maul the world like a carnival bear set free
by wearehurricanes
Summary: they're young, but he knows.


i was listening to about a girl by the summer set and suddenly when the bridge came on i was hit - or i guess more accurately, assaulted - by _the feels._ and so this happened. spitfire.

disclaimer: i don't own young justice and all rights go to their respective owners.

—

It starts with the salt shaker. Artemis is cooking dinner and her hands are full and she tells him to pass her the salt. Wally is eyeball-deep in yet _another_ essay so he doesn't so much as acknowledge her.

"Wally!" She barks. It startles him out of his academia-induced stupor, ripping his eyes away from the screen where the rows and rows of words are starting to resemble black squiggly lines. "What?" "Could you just _help_ me? Just this once?" His eyebrows knit together and in hindsight, he was probably just being irritable because, _school_. It's the last essay he has to turn it before spring break officially starts for him and he's determined to finish by tonight.

"Get it yourself, I'm almost done."

"Is it humanly possible for you to not be a tool 24/7?"

It's juvenile and dumb, reminiscent of the spats they would get into when they were kids, young and derisive and eager for a verbal tussle. It ends with dinner burning, the smoke alarm goes off and no one feels like eating anymore.

He figures it's just another stupid fight. They'll get over it and be back to normal in no time at all.

He wakes on the sofa the next morning, his back is aching something fierce and he needs to stretch his legs. Brucely's dish is filled, but her toothbrush is gone.

—

He stays with Connor in his small, sunny apartment in Metropolis. Connor has a lot of plants, which he waters frequently; Wally helps. Most days he just lounges upside-down on the sofa, staring blankly at the TV until his neck grows stiff, as the sounds of the city filter through the large open windows.

"Dude, what if I…what if that was my one shot, my one chance at…" Wally stumbles over the confession, at the realisation that he could have blown it, all because of one stupid comment that escalated into a stupid fight. He groans into his hands.

Connor looks up from where he's reading, a textbook open on the kitchen table. "You love her, right?"

"Yeah." Wally hangs his head, his voice barely a whisper.

Connor shrugs. "Then what is there to talk about?" He looks back down at his book.

Wally zips out of the apartment so fast papers fly everywhere and Brucely whines from where he's perched at Connor's feet. Connor grunts, shakes his head fondly and reaches down to scratch behind the dog's ears.

—

He gets down on his knees and throws a hand blindly under the - their - bed. He pulls out a cardboard box that he knows contains mementos of significant events. Artemis', because she's a sap like that.

As soon as he opens the cover he sees it, resting innocently on a group photo of the two of them, Kaldur, Connor, M'gann and Dick. A cheap plastic ring he bought for her on a whim when they'd been out on a date about a year into their relationship. It had just been something cute and romantic, another piece of jewellery to add to her collection. He pretends not to notice that it's the only thing he sees that doesn't at least have a slight amount of dust on it.

When he reaches Jade's apartment, the sun is setting behind him and he's out of breath. He doesn't hesitate to rap on the door and uses the five seconds it takes for the door to swing open to pull air into his lungs. No matter how hard he inhales, it doesn't seem to be enough. He quickly looks behind him to make sure he hasn't accidentally left skid marks in his haste. Artemis is the one who opens the door - her hair is wet, face bare. His wide eyes drop to her front and she's wearing a shirt that's far too big for her. He hadn't even realised it was gone.

She looks a little stunned. The last rays of sunlight light up her gunmetal irises and she squints against the sunset behind him. He stares at her; a drop of water slides off her hair and onto the carpet. He fumbles with the object in his pocket. Fishes it out. Gets down on one knee. Holds it up between his thumb and index finger. Pretends not to notice all the twitching curtains around them.

He opens his mouth and he realises he doesn't know what to say. He doesn't have flowery prose and grand romantic gestures. Hell, he doesn't even have a real freaking ring - something with a precious stone that matches the colour of her bow or whatever, instead of the flimsy piece of plastic he's holding; it's paint is chipped, he suddenly notices and tries not to let the embarrassment show on his face. He doesn't have the words to describe the way he feels when she smiles at him, and he feels warm all over. He can't explain how much he loves her without sounding like a complete fool. How she's everything he never knew he wanted but he got anyway and he couldn't be happier and he wants to keep making her promises he tries his best to keep. They're young, but he _knows_. His hands are shaking and he tries to smile up at her but it comes out as more of a grimace. The only thing he can offer her are four words. "Will you - "

She grabs him by his outstretched wrist and pulls him inside before he can even get through the second one. Her hands fist in the front of his jacket and she pushes the door closed with his body. Her breath rattles out of her lungs as she stares at the floor between them. They only touch at the points where her hands are gripping his clothing, pushing him against the door, like she's bracing herself. "Wally." She sounds like she does right before she cries and she looks so distraught that his heart stops because he suddenly thinks, _what am I going to do if she says no_?

But then her lips are sliding over his and he's so relieved he could cry. He does, actually, though he would never admit that part of the story. She gives him a proper answer to the question he didn't even get to finish, he picks her up in his arms right then and there, grinning from ear to ear, and they go home.


End file.
